I'm lucky that on my last trip to California we stayed at a motel in Carlsbad that was a 10 minute walk from the Pizza Port. I bought a growler the first night and had it washed and refilled the second and third nights we were there. My wife and I had no trouble finishing them off.

Too many places around here will only sell pre-filled growlers and will not take returns. Kind of negates the benefits. And now I'm swimming in the damn things. Reminds me that I need to take a load to the recycler the weekend.

Same sort of laws in Indiana. It has to do with regulations that the label on the container must accurately describe the contents. So putting "ABC" brewery's beer into a jug labeled "XYZ Brewing Co." isn't kosher. OTOH, I can take a Corny keg to a brewery, get it filled and they'll slap their adhesive label on the keg.

Liquor stores aren't allowed to fill a growler from a tap, like they can in many states.

But we're very close to getting a law thru that will allow breweries & brewpubs to sell their beer for carry out on Sundays. But the sale has to be made at the location listed on the brewery's license. No third party sales.

Now, wineries can sell on Sundays, but that's it. A person can drive to a restaurant and drink your fill and then drive home on Sunday. But you can't get carry-out to take home and drink, unless you have a winery within driving distance. Before the Colts arrived in Indianapolis, there weren't any Sunday sales at all. But of course, the football team needs to sell beer at the games, so the law got changed.

The Brewers Guild has argued that if a winery can sell direct to consumers on Sundays, then breweries should be able to do the same.

The winery lobbyists sold the statehouse that it was good for tourism. So far, the Brewers Guild is making some headway with the same logic.

As I've mentioned on many occasions, the Twenty-Frist Amendment, which left alcohol regulation almost entirely to the individual states and municipalities, is a classic example of the law of unintended consequences. It also creates a situation full of opportunities for special interests in the state legislatures.

For a state like CA, which considers itself so "progressive", this law is asinine.

Russian River is releasing Pliny the Younger (brewery tap only) pretty soon, and I have multiple growlers at home from various KS breweries I can't use. I suppose I can pay the extra cost for a new growler.

When in Charleston, S.C. be sure to stop into the Charleston Beer Exchange. Went in on vacation and they had several great beers on draft, along with an almost overwhelming selection of bottled beer. And yes, they had growlers. I had never been into a beer shop quite like it. The growlers proved to be a special treat while lounging around on the beach. We went back several times for growler refills.